Cybercrime generally refers to criminal activity involving computer systems. Such criminal activity includes the use of computer systems to perpetrate crimes and illegally access private electronic data. Cybercriminals may gain access to private user account information in a number of ways. For example, cybercriminals may obtain user account credentials and information by exploiting weaknesses in centralized computer systems, by infiltrating local computer systems of users, by tricking users into providing account information, by stealing user account information directly from a company, and by intercepting user account information on a network.
Phishing is a type of cybercrime that criminals use to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, financial account details, social security numbers, and other private data from users. In phishing, cybercriminals masquerade as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication, such as an e-mail, instant message, mistyped website, etc. For example, a cybercriminal may send a communication purporting to be from an e-mail provider, social networking website, auction website, bank, or an online payment processor to lure unsuspecting users into providing private and sensitive data. Thus, cybercriminals use phishing and other fraudulent schemes to gain trust from users who are unable to determine that an electronic message or website is malicious.
Phishing and other fraudulent online schemes continue to increase both in number and in sophistication. Therefore, providing new and improved ways of identifying, mitigating, and blocking malicious content to protect users and organizations are of importance.